


What's Real

by CrazyNights



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V, Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal
Genre: Accidentshipping - Freeform, Aunty Rio, Crossover, Dangershipping, Galaxymastershipping, Multi, Other Relationships to Be Added - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:28:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28158327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrazyNights/pseuds/CrazyNights
Summary: A crossover between Zexal and Arc-V. This will take place before the actual events of Arc-V and obviously is an alternate universe. The Zexal group has to save the world again, and not just theirs. Barian and Astral World are also at stake as well as other dimensions. Can the leader of the Barians work together and with their old friends once more to save all living things? We shall see.
Relationships: IV | Thomas Arclight/Kamishiro Rio, Kamishiro Ryouga/Mizuki Kotori, Mizael/Tenjou Kaito
Comments: 1
Kudos: 9





	What's Real

CHAPTER ONE: REAL

Ryoga Kamishiro looked over where his wife was currently sitting cross legged on the floor with their two young children. Her green hair was side parted and resting on her shoulders. The long light blue sweater and black leggings she wore for the weather change, accented her figure. Her gold eyes were sparkling with happiness as she leaned over to place Ruri, their infant daughter, into their young son’s waiting arms.

“This is how you hold her Shun.” Kotori smiled as Shun held Ruri carefully. He took his role as big brother seriously. “There you go, make sure her head is supported.” Kotori shifted Shun’s hands until Ruri was fully supported and in no danger of being dropped.

Shun looked physically like Kotori, with his dual colored green hair and gold eyes, but his personality was all his father, Ryoga. Even at a young age, he was the somber and protective type. He looked up at his mother with such a serious expression, that it didn’t belong on his three year old face.

“You sure he is able to hold Ruri?” Ryoga asked as he uncrossed his arms from his chest and walked into the room.

Three sets of eyes looked at him. He smirked as he walked over and knelt down next to Kotori and looked at his son and infant daughter. Ruri looked like a female version of Ryoga. The hair she had was a muted tone of his own purple hair. She had violet eyes that were in a rare state of wakefulness as she looked at her father.

Kotori playfully shoved at Ryoga’s shoulder. Giggling, she looked back to Shun who was staring down at Ruri once more. Looking side eyed at Ryoga, she took in how relaxed he looked for the moment. His purple hair was pulled back, except for the few strands resting on his sides of his face. He wore a purple shirt with a black jacket that was open and the Barian jewel hung from a chain around his neck. His blue eyes were looking at their kids and she felt relief he looked so at ease.

Ruri decided she had enough of being in her brother’s arms and started to cry. Shun looked momentarily panicked as he looked to his parents. He hadn’t done anything wrong and now Ruri was crying. Before Shun could panic too much, Ryoga reached over and grabbed his daughter. Pulling her to his chest, he rocked her gently, remembering when he used to do with Rio, as well as Shun.

Shun pouted for a moment and Kotori reached over to pull Shun on her lap. Leaning down, she kissed the top of his head and put her lips at his little ear. “Don’t worry too much sweetie. Ruri is still so small, and when children are that small, sometimes they just want their parents. And both of you have always felt safe when your father holds you like that.”

Shun looked at his mom with wide gold eyes. He looked back to where his father was gently rocking Ruri back to sleep. Her violet eyes slowly closed as her father’s comforting presence and motions calmed her. Once her eyes were closed, Ryoga leaned down to kiss her little head.

Kotori could hear him speak something to their daughter and she knew he was speaking his ancient language. It sounded a little rusty on his lips, but he loved speaking it to the children and her as well. However, he would rarely tell her what the words meant. He would just give one of his rare smiles and nudge her forehead with two fingers.

“Daddy, what do you say to us when we go to sleep?” Shun asked. His eyes were large as he looked at his father.

“It means I have loved you longer than the centuries in time.” Ryoga’s eyes took on a faraway look as he seemed to remember something. Blinking, he cleared his vision and smiled softly at Shun. He reached over and carefully, not to jostle Ruri, shifted Shun so he was on his lap. With his arms around both of his children, Ryoga closed his eyes and smiled. “I mean it too. I love you kids and your mom.” He looked to Kotori and she leaned her head on his strong shoulder.

“We love you too.” Kotori whispered her affirmation. She could see the need for some kind of reassurance, that this was real.

Shun picked up on his father’s discomfort and turned around, he stood on his father’s lap. Ryoga looked shocked and watched his son carefully. Keeping a firm hold on Ruri, to shield her if Shun lost his balance. He felt heat crept up his cheeks as Shun kissed Ryoga’s forehead, just like the older always does.

“Love you daddy.” Shun yawned suddenly and Kotori laughed. “Not funny mama.” The little one pouted and rubbed his eyes stubbornly.

“Why don’t I take Ruri and you grab Shun?” Kotori asked Ryoga. “I think both of them need a little nap before we go shopping this afternoon.”

Shifting, Ryoga handed Ruri to her mother and wrapped his arms around Shun and stood up with him. Shun laid his head on his father’s shoulder and closed his eyes. Raising his hand, he put a fist next to his mouth and proceeded to fall asleep. Ryoga looked at his son and smiled at the sight of this tiny little human falling asleep so easily and freely around him.

“This is real Ryoga,” Kotori whispered as she held Ruri carefully. “That war is done, you can finally live at peace now. Don Thousand’s curse is no more.” She kept her voice quiet so as not to wake the sleeping children.

“Hmph.” Ryoga blew out a breath and started to walk out of the living room and down the hallway to the kids’ bedrooms. Shun’s room was on the left, Ruri’s room was on the right and the master bedroom was at the end of the hall.

Ryoga walked into Shun’s room and placed him in the little bed. They recently had gotten rid of his crib and had him start sleeping in a normal bed. Kotori demanded they put guard rails up, to keep him from rolling off the bed, or even climbing out in the middle of the night.

Pulling his favorite blanket over his son, Ryoga went to his knees and placed his chin on his hands. Shun slept so peacefully, it was the life he wanted for his kids. One free from everything he and his family as well as friends endured years ago. With one last brush of his fingers through the green hair, Ryoga stood and walked silently across the soft neutral colored carpet.

He turned on the monitor and closed the door silently. Looking a couple of feet from him, he noticed Kotori was doing the same thing from Ruri’s room. She smiled and reached out to grab her husband’s hand. She pulled him the length of the hallway and out the sliding glass door at the back.

Once outside, she set both monitors down on the table and pulled him to the swinging bench. They sat down and she put her head on Ryoga’s shoulder, and a hand on his chest, where the Barian Crystal hung. As he always did when she touched it, he jerked a little and settled.

Using his long legs, Ryoga started to move the bench back and forth, the motion calming for both adults. The sun was currently hidden behind some white clouds, but it was still beautiful out. A light breeze rustled their hair and Ryoga turned his head to the sky and closed his eyes.

“I know it’s gone Kotori.” Ryoga spoke suddenly. They had been sitting in silence for the last little bit.

“You’re still having nightmares aren’t you?” she questioned quietly. Her gold eyes looked up to her husband of five years.

“Yeah, and I think about the other Barians… how they had so much trouble integrating for the longest time.” Ryoga opened his eyes and looked down at Kotori. “Alit had nightmares about his execution for the longest time. Mizael swore he could still feel the arrows piercing him from the attack that ended his life. I could go on…”

“You can’t change it Ryoga. What happened was horrible to all seven of you. Don Thousand is the one to blame, and don’t forget that you did so much for them. For Alit you got a hold of Yuma, the one person who can make anyone smile. You knew Alit needed a friend, one that would take his mind off what he kept reliving in his nightmares.” She paused and shifted to straddle his lap, and leaned down so their noses were touching. “For Mizael you reached out to Kaito. You knew he could pull Mizael out from his depression, and stand by him through it. They are still together and last I heard Mizael is doing better, he even took a job as Assistant Director at the museum.” Kotori leaned down and brushed her lips against her husband’s.

“Where did you hear that Mizael was now the Assistant Director at the museum?” Ryoga questioned when they parted.

“I ran into Haruto and Kaito last week. They were doing some grocery shopping and we spent a little bit of time catching up. They told me how they have been doing and how Mizael was. Did you know Kaito is now the leading executive on parallel worlds research?” Kotori responded.

“That doesn’t surprise me. That guy has way too many tabs open in his brain,” Ryoga muttered thinking of his old friend Kaito. A smirk appeared a moment later. “Well at least it sounds like they are doing well. I am glad they are still together, I remember thinking when I first saw Mizael as a human, this is another Kaito. Same type of cards, same arrogance and flare for dramatic. But they work, so I guess that’s all that matters.”

Kotori giggled and sighed. Curling up, she put her head under Ryoga’s chin and wrapped her arms around his waist as they sat in silence for a bit. They were enjoying the rare moment of peace and quiet, with two young children, such things were rare. Kissing his neck, she shifted so she looked down at him again. His blue eyes were half mast and had the look of someone who was finally letting their tension seep away.

“Now that you talked about the two emperors who worried you… let’s talk about you. What are your nightmares Ryoga?” Kotori asked.

Sighing, he shifted and with a hand on the small of her back, he pulled his legs up and stretched the length of the swing. He nestled into the corner and looked at Kotori. Her gold eyes were determined to make him talk about it. She didn’t want him keeping it bottled up until he blew.

“It’s just nightmares about me dueling two people who I consider my best friends.” His eyes flashed for a moment and he looked at her with a halfhearted glare. “And if you tell Quattro or Yuma I said that I will reveal everything embarrassing you have done since we were in school.”

“Promise,” she said with a laugh at the end.

“I think about how badly I beat Quattro and looked down at him, beaten and bruised at my feet. He smiled up at me before he vanished. Then the duel against Yuma, forcing him to choose Astral or me. I felt like a dick, but I had… have a responsibility to the Barians. I may be human now, but I am still connected to Barian World.” Sliding his hand between Kotori and his body, he rested his hand on the jewel hanging from his neck.

“They both understand. Yuma still considers you a friend, one of his best friends at that. He tells me all the time how glad he is that he has a friend like you. As for Quattro, I think you two understand each other. If nothing else, that little speech you gave at his and Rio’s wedding sure made your point.” Kotori smiled at the memory.

Ryoga froze and with a somewhat painful tug on his wife’s hair, he growled under his breath. “I don’t know what I was thinking, getting so sentimental. Rio hasn’t let me live it down even to this day.” Ryoga covered his eyes with his hand and groaned. 

“You were thinking that Rio had someone to look after her just like you do. Even with the rocky start, Quattro was the first to help when she needed it later. Dueling side by side with you to help rescue her. He loves her and she is able to see beyond his manic personality to the real person he is. Thomas, not Quattro.” Her response was so like her, seeing people for what they are, not just their actions.

“Yeah… as long as Rio is happy then she could have married a rock for all I care.” Ryoga closed his eyes again and moved his hand from his eyes to rest behind Kotori’s head. Pulling her in for a kiss, he smiled when the monitor from Ruri’s room signaled the little one was awake. “It was nice while it lasted.”

“Hey there little one. Are mommy and daddy ignoring you?” A sing-song voice came from Ruri’s monitor.

Both parents froze for a moment before jumping up. Ryoga knew that voice, but damn it she needed to stop using overlay portals to just appear wherever she wanted. He used his long legs to get to his daughter’s room first and threw the door open. Sure enough, there stood his sister Rio.

She smiled at her brother as she held her little niece and cooed down at her. Ruri, who still was unsure of people other than her parents and brother narrowed her eyes at Rio. Her bottom lip trembled and she looked close to wailing, but Rio brought her up and blew a raspberry on her tummy, causing Ruri to giggle.

“Damn it Rio!” Ryoga bit out. His left eye flashed red for a moment, a sure sign he was on edge.

“Now, now Ryoga there is no need to get nasty with me. I just wanted to stop by and see my adorable niece and nephew. But when I heard her start to whimper I came in here instead of letting you know I was here.” She smiled politely at her older twin.

Rio had the face of an angel, but the mind of a devil. In retrospect it was probably why she understood Quattro so well. She currently wore a dark pink sweater and light blue pants. Her dual toned hair was fanned out around her and her magenta eyes glinted with glee. She did a little twirl with Ruri in her arms and the little infant let out a tinkling laugh.

“You know you could act like a normal person and CALL before you come over.” Ryoga blew out a breath and put a hand to his forehead and tried to rub away the upcoming headache.

“Aunty Rio!” Shun’s excited voice came from behind them.

For being such a somber child, he loved to see his Aunt. He was brilliant and was able to speak in partial phrases. He toddled over to where Rio stood and she eagerly reached down to pick him up. Keeping a firm hold on Ruri, she placed Shun on her hip and smiled at him.

“Did you miss me little buddy?” Rio asked. Rio was in love with her brother’s children. She wasn’t afraid to admit it and threatened people who poked fun at her for doting on them like she did.

Shun nodded his head eagerly and looked at his sister. Ruri smiled at Shun and babbled at him, before looking at Rio and doing the same. Rio nodded her head along with whatever Ruri was saying and laughed when she did. Ryoga just looked at his younger twin, the sight she made holding his kids. A little smile tugged at his lips, he was lucky that his kids had a defender like his sister.

“I am heating up some water for coffee or tea. Why don’t we all sit in the living room, I think shopping is postponed for today,” Kotori said as she walked up. She grabbed Ryoga’s hand and squeezed it for reassurance.

Rio looked at Kotori and smiled sheepishly for the first time. “I can watch the little ones if you want. I really don’t mind, I want to spend some time with them. So why don’t you two go do your shopping, and you don’t have to worry about little ones.” Rio’s eyes begged for them to do just that.

Kotori sighed and looked at Ryoga. Her husband simply shook his head in mildly fond exasperation. Lifting his head, he looked at his sister and smiled. “If you think you can handle these two while we do some shopping, I won’t say no. We do need to get a few things and while they behave for the most part, Shun is still a toddler and Ruri is an infant.”

Rio looked down at Shun and smiled at him. “Do you want to stay with Aunty Rio while your parents go out?” Shun nodded his head and looked to his parents. Gold eyes lighting up at the prospect. “See, we will be fine and if I need help I have people on speed dial. Go out and do some shopping and enjoy some free time. I can handle these two little angels.”

“Your funeral,” Ryoga muttered. Kotori slapped his arm with a huff and walked out. He loved and adored his kids… however Shun was three and had the mindset that he was always right. Ryoga dreaded the day his son became a teenager.

Rio followed them and with both kids in her possession, she told Shun to wave to his parents as they got on Ryoga’s bike. He only used it when he and Kotori would go out, the car was for when the whole family went out. Once the parents were down the street and out of sight, Rio turned to her niece and nephew.

“Now Shun… how about Aunty Rio shows you what it means to duel like a pro? I think you will be a master duelist." She looked at him and grinned. "You will be a Winged Beast expert."

Shun smiled. When his Aunty Rio and Uncle Thomas showed him dueling they were entertaining. His dad was similar, but it didn't look as fun as when his Uncle and Aunt showed him. He wanted to be a Winged Beast duelist, just like his Aunty.

******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Ryoga walked down the aisles of the supermarket with his wife. It was the first time since either of the kids were born they were shopping alone. With Rio taking care of Shun and Ruri, the two of them were able to do some shopping without Ruri crying or Shun fighting to be let out and walk. Ryoga smiled and pushed the cart.

“We need to make sure we get the brown sugar too. I want to do a little baking, and we are completely out of it,” Kotori said. Ryoga learned long ago that when she spoke like that, she was thinking out loud, not necessarily asking him to remember. “Oh and a few more bottles for Ruri.”

“Nasch!” Ryoga heard someone yell.

Both he and Kotori froze on the spot. No one outside of their small group of friends knew him by that name. And even fewer called him that. Turning their heads, they saw Rei Shingetsu coming up to him. Out of all the Emperors, Rei was the one that still rubbed Ryoga the wrong way.

“Rei, shut the hell up,” Ryoga hissed.

“Sorry, but I knew it would get your attention,” Rei said as he made his way to where the couple stood.

His orange hair was spiked up in its usual look and his purple eyes glinted with worry. The look in his eyes was what stopped Ryoga from snapping out at him. Rei never showed worry like this… something wasn’t right.

“What? What’s wrong?” Ryoga hissed out. The look in Rei’s eyes had him worried and he didn’t think he would like what was coming.

Standing in front of the couple, Rei ran his hand over the brown jacket he wore and looked at Ryoga. “There have been some disturbances lately. The barrier between the three worlds is disintegrating. None of us are sure as to what’s going on. Durbe and Mizael have looked into it, but neither are sure what is causing it.” His eyes flashed to the side for a moment before once again looking at his leader. “And even more problematic is the fact that there have been strange signals coming from what appear to be different dimensions.”

Kotori gasped and put a hand over her mouth in concern. People around them looked over, trying to figure out what was going on. Ryoga patted her hand and looked at her. With a quick glance around, he saw that people were starting to stare and he couldn’t have that.

“Hunny, why don’t you go finish shopping. Rei and I are going to step outside and talk.” He leaned over and kissed her temple, before putting his lips to her ear and whispering to her. “Everything will be fine. We will figure this out, so finish shopping and put it out of your mind for now.”

Kotori forced a smile and waved to both men. She turned around and grabbed the cart, starting to collect the items they needed before they would head back home. Ryoga looked after her and shook his head. If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. There was never any rest for any of them.

“Outside. Now.” He spoke with a clipped tone and walked out of the market with Rei behind him. Once outside and over by his ride, Ryoga turned to look at Rei. “Talk.”

“We aren’t entirely sure. Just that Durbe picked up on some strange signals and when he investigated them… it seemed off. The signals mirrored our dimension, but they were slightly altered. Mizael brought up the option of Parallel Dimensions. Not necessarily Astral World or Barian World, but basically another Earth.” Rei’s eyes were the size of dinner plates now. He looked genuinely upset.

“So we don’t have any information on this?” Ryoga placed a hand on his chin, contemplating. “Has Mizael asked Kaito to look into this? He knows more about different worlds than most.”

“Yeah, Mizael took his findings to Kaito and he agreed to run some scans to see what he can dissect from them. We are just waiting on the results from the tests. Durbe wanted to let you know and since I was close by I told him I would find you.”

“Why were you close by?” Ryoga narrowed his eyes at Rei.

“Yuma and I were catching a movie. He got tickets to the new action blockbuster coming out tonight. The extra ticket was for me and we had plans to see it and then get a bite to eat.” Rei fidgeted on the spot and Ryoga smirked.

“Whatever, just behave yourself Rei. If you and Yuma want to make out during a movie, then far be it from me to stop you.” 

Ryoga knew what buttons to push and he hit them with precision accuracy. The response was as predictable as it was explosive. Rei turned as red as his D-Gazer and he started fuming. Ryoga could swear he saw smoke coming out of Rei’s ears and off the pointed orange top of his hair.

“It isn’t like that!” Rei shouted. He threw his arms out and flapped like a deranged parrot. With his red face and arms flapping out like a lunatic, he made a hilarious picture.

“Are you alright Rei?” Kotori said as she walked out.

Ryoga shoved off where he stood by his bike and walked over to take some of the bags from her. Smiling, she kissed Ryoga on the cheek. Turning her attention back to the other Barian Emperor who looked like a bright red parrot. Pressing her lips together to keep from laughing, she cocked her head to the side in question.

“Yeah, fine.” Rei huffed and stuffed his hands in the pockets of his dark jeans. Turning to the side, he looked at Ryoga and Kotori. “That’s about it, now if you’ll excuse me, I have a movie to catch.” Rei started to walk away and over to a covert area, where he could open a portal and leave.

“Seriously Ryoga, what was that look about?” Kotori asked, finally letting her laughter break free.

Ryoga chuckled as he loaded the bags into the compartment on the back of his ride. Standing back to his full height, he looked in the direction where Rei vanished. He hoped Yuma knew what he was getting into with Rei. But then again the same could be said of the flip side. Rei didn’t know how truly hyper and energetic Yuma is. He matured over the years, but his personality hasn’t changed.

“Rei has a date with Yuma. I gave him shit about it and you saw the end result.” Ryoga laughed as he looked back at Kotori before climbing on the bike. “Come on, I don’t want to leave our kids alone with Rio too long.” A cold shudder ran through his body. “I have a foreboding feeling as it is.”

Kotori threw a leg over the bike and sat down. After putting the helmet on, she wrapped her arms around his waist. Laughing she threw her head back as Ryoga started the engine and roared out of the lot.

“Oh come on, it’s not like Rio is going to be teaching Shun and Ruri to back flip off the couch…” Kotori could tell that was the wrong thing to say by the way he tensed up. “Ryoga?”

“That image is never leaving my mind now. And Rio will never be alone with our kids again!” Revving the throttle, Ryoga sped faster down the road toward their home.

**Author's Note:**

> So I saw someone say this while I was scrolling through images on break one day. This headcanon has not left me so I decided to write it. So in this Shun and Ruri are the Kamishiro children and when I look at them, it makes sense. Shun to me has a similar look to Kotori and Ruri has a look similar to Ryoga. Also Aunty Rio is something I am in love with. Her and Thomas Arclight would be the ultimate Aunt and Uncle team. Showing the kids how to duel and perform, constantly giving Ryoga a heart attack.
> 
> Now for my other works, I am still working on them. I lost the next two chapters for Hell in Shadows and am trying to rewrite them. So I am working on that and now this. I was getting stressed out trying to remember what I wrote for that, and this little idea is on my mind. So here is something for now and fingers crossed I can redo those chapters. As always, thoughts and predictions welcome. Let me know what you all think. Stay safe and healthy everyone!


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